Legal Protection

“We didn’t know if this was human smuggling or human trafficking, if these individuals were there against their will or willingly, all we knew was we had 10 body bags. It certainly opened up everyone’s eyes to a duty of care we have for people who are in our city, regardless of their status.”

Washington, DC – Today, the Trump administration ended the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) program for El Salvador effective September 9, 2019. TPS provides legal status to individuals from designated countries who are unable to return home due to ongoing armed conflict, disaster, or other exigent and temporary circumstances. TPS holders from El Salvador will have until September 9, 2019 to leave the United States or seek other means to obtain lawful permanent residency. Termination of TPS will affect nearly 200,000 nationals of El Salvador who have complied with the law and built lives, businesses, and families in the U.S. The decision also places more than 192,000 U.S. citizen children of Salvadoran TPS holders at risk of losing a parent or being forced to leave their own country.

Washington, DC. – Last night, the Trump administration officially terminated the Central American Minors (CAM) refugee program with an announcement that it would no longer accept applications to the program as of 11:59 p.m. Thursday night.

“Justicia para Jane! Whose bodies? Our bodies!” chanted a group of about 30 protesters in front of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services building Friday morning. The protesters, made up of mostly Planned Parenthood and NARAL Pro-Choice America organizers and staff, were speaking out against the Trump administration’s decision to bar an undocumented teenager from getting an abortion for her unwanted pregnancy. The young woman, identified as Jane Doe in court, was detained after crossing the southern U.S. border in Texas.

Many undocumented immigrant girls seeking safety in the United States are raped during their journeys. Once they arrive, they are put in custody of a government that is now obstructing access to abortion.

Thousands of Salvadorans, Haitians and others now sheltered in the United States from danger in their home countries might have to leave under a crackdown the Trump administration is weighing on a program that critics slam as "back-door" immigration.

A substantial number of the U.S. public organizations have signed a joint letter opposing the bill. This list includes Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, League of United Latin American Citizens, National Association of Social Workers, the Episcopal Church, Women's Refugee Commission and many more nonprofits.

The complaint — made to the department’s inspector general and civil rights officer — alleges that the women suffered physical and psychological harm and asks the department to investigate the cases and report on what steps immigration authorities will take to enforce its policies on the detention and treatment of pregnant women.

Emma is one of the hundreds of undocumented pregnant women who are sent to an Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention center after crossing the border — even though ICE policy forbids detention of pregnant women except under "extraordinary circumstances."

The American Civil Liberties Union has become one of the most consistent thorns in the side of President Donald Trump. In just the first month of the administration, the group sued the president over his travel ban on seven majority-Muslim countries and won (though a more limited version of the ban was eventually implemented). Later in the administration, they sued over Trump's attempt to ban transgender individuals from the military. And on Tuesday, the ACLU filed an administrative complaint against ICE for detaining pregnant women.

Educators and local leaders in Los Angeles came out fast and strong against Tuesday’s announcement ending DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) and in support of the hundreds of thousands of students it has protected.